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Need Advice ,Please

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by chenno on July 16, 2006 04:04 AM
Hi

I have a huge ivy plant, not sure the kind, posted in mystery, I have taken shoots and made plants for my house, just stuck in water and planted after rooted.

My question is I want to mail some cuttings, should i start to root them awhile and then mail?

Also, what would your thoughts be on mailing them?

Your advice on both ?'s would be kindly appreciated, Thanks in advance..Angie

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Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks.
Plutarch
by chenno on July 16, 2006 04:05 AM
P.s. I meant mailing procedure?how would you go about it?
Thanks

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Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks.
Plutarch
by plants 'n pots on July 16, 2006 04:31 AM
Hi Angie ~

When I mailed some wandering jew cuttings to Becky earlier this year, I did not wait for them to root. I wrapped the cut ends in a damp paper towel, put that end inside a plastic baggie, and used a twist-tie to close the bag snuggly around the stems. I then wrapped the cuttings in newspaper and put them into a small box.

They apparently made the trip well, and are growing nicely for Becky now.

Good luck!

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"I'm spayed, declawed, and housebound - how's YOUR day going???"
by chenno on July 16, 2006 04:37 AM
[wavey] Hi Ya, Lynne

Thank you, Never mailed cuttings or plants before..cool.I thought I had to root them first?
Learn something new everyday.
Nice to see you!

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Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks.
Plutarch
by dodge on July 19, 2006 01:38 PM
chenno

I put my plastic bag into a yogurt cut after putting it in the baggie......
Keeps the roots from getting all crushed .

Or if you have a tall plastic container to make it stable and not break up the plant.

dodge

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by roflol on August 24, 2006 05:53 PM
On the subject of wandering jew, I received a whole passle of the zebrina variety in an ebay purchase. They'd been growing outdoors in TX, and had already been "water rooted" by the time I got them.

A month and a half later I am down to a few sick looking bits left. When I first got them, I put them in water to buy myself more time (they came in 2 boxes packed with other stuff, much of which died... note to self: Be careful what you wish for). The zebrina also started dying pretty quickly, always from the stem end. In about a week I potted them up in potting soil outside in a pretty sheltered area and kept them watered (I know now, they don't like much sun OR much water).

As they started looking worse and worse, I brought them inside. They would have bright new growth at the tips (raising my hopes every time), but the stem end would get black and mushy or hard, with no roots. So I'd pinch off the dead stem ends and stick them back in the dirt, but the stems would slowly blacken some more and the leaves would brown and fall off, and inch by inch that cutting would disappear and the new growth would dull and die, my hopes dashed along with it. I finally looked online and learned to pinch below the leaf nodes so it could root, but they're still dying. I had one of these in the 1970s and it lasted a long time.

I'm pretty sure my biggest mistake was overwatering to begin with, but am surprised it did not recover. I haven't seen a bug on any of them. Was there anything else I should have learned from this? Thanks in advance for any light you can shed on this experience. I hate killing stuff. :-(
by dodge on August 25, 2006 01:28 AM
roflol

Are your rolling on the floor laughing? Didnt sound like it.

Some times , no matter what one does, mother nature wont co operate and do it for you.
Try just putting it directly into the soil.
That sounded like me and Africian violets.. I put them in store bought moist soil and they are rooting like crazy.. keeping them in shade for a while helps......They say there is bacteria in the water as soon as on puts them in .. Change it daily...........Right it needs the notch to root.....And young pieces root easier.

Hope it helps

dodge

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by roflol on August 25, 2006 05:47 AM
LOL, Dodge. No, wasn't exactly rolling on the floor laughing last night. Just a general life philosophy.

Unfortunately, by the time I checked on the sprigs last night they were all deceased so now all that's left is to learn and move on. I know that one pot never did dry out, so need to find a plant that likes to be wet.

I'm going to go out and take a cutting off my new-this-year snail vine, slap it in the "doom-pot", and see what happens. There are a few other plants I'll see if I can overwinter as well, have to look them up.

Thanks for the info, though.
by dodge on August 25, 2006 06:58 AM
roflol........

Just put them in moist soil.......No need to drown them....
try lots of them......christmas cactus roots well in soil only........

good luck

dodge [Eek!] [Big Grin] [wavey]

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by roflol on August 26, 2006 01:18 PM
Thanks for the encouragement, Dodge. :-) Hey, I have family in Pittsburgh in the North Hills area, used to visit there every year but they got mad 'cause we made fun of how yinz talk. ;-)

So yesterday I put a stray snail vine off-shoot in the doom-pot of soil (I snipped it off below leaf nodes I guess, hope that's right, and took off the leaves then stuck the resultant 2-3 inches of stem in the soil). I watered it in well but not to drowning point, and put it back outside near the mother snail vine, hoping the ants and familiar environment would keep it from going into total shock (I can dream, right?). This afternoon was not too hot, got into the mid 80s, and the leaves are still green, not too droopy, so I took another stray off-shoot and put it in another wandering jew death-pot for my mother (in case they live) and put a couple of cuttings of variegated vinca in as well since I know that likes water too (that's right, she *can* be taught!).

Again with the vinca I snipped below leaf nodes - is this a rule of thumb, or am I naive to believe it's could be that simple, that most if not all plants will root better if you take a cutting below a leaf node?

Here's hoping....
by dodge on August 26, 2006 02:21 PM
roflol

Your getting smarter.........

Now sort of keep them with shade a while.. I had a plastic fence which i put over the top to shade a little......Like a lattice fencing.
Clipping below nodes ........is the only way to do it .....Beats me how that is , but it works in all that I know of.........

Isnt your name "rolling on the floor laughing"
roflol????????
See I am not really a dodge, just it went with my name on a different site......So I use it ..ha ha

Yes we heard Pittsburgh talk funny........It is about 70 mile from me ......You was a long way from home......
Are you raised in Mo.?

I been in Pa all my life............Traveled out west about 10 times.

dodge

barb

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by roflol on August 26, 2006 03:09 PM
roflol = rolling on floor laughing out loud... I'm such an internet geek, that's even on my license plate. Better than my first internet nickname back in (mumbles behind hand because I don't like admitting I've been online this long)... I called myself Epilady back then because I didn't like being messed with... remember those epilator thingies, the spinning coils of death? LOL, people really *didn't* mess with me! Anyway, I've lightened up with age, and roflol is what I've become.

I was born in NJ and transplanted here at age 6, before Joisey tawk became permanent (but my Pittsburgh cousins still like to rub my nose in it).

When we visit Pitt, we still come in via I70, I think all the way until we get very close to Pittsburgh, and I know it's positively beautiful in the hills before the tunnels... it blows me away every time.

Thanks again for the advice.
:-)

Terri
by clawgirl on August 26, 2006 03:49 PM
This is just a thought...maybe you need a new/different soiless mix in the "doom pot." I'm wondering if there is a bacteria or fungus in the current soil that might be killing off your cuttings...

Aimee
by roflol on August 26, 2006 04:48 PM
That is a very good possibility. I will give it one more chance (this is only the second planting I've tried in this stuff, it's a mix of old and new soils). If these all die, I will dump this soil or at least find something already established to plant in these pots, and try to get the cuttings to grow some other way. Thanks for the suggestion, Aimee.

My hope is just to get at least one annual to make it through the winter, and it sounded like the snail vine has a good chance if I can get it started.

In my eBay box I also got yellow morning glories and Grandpa Ott's MG but I'm afraid they won't set seed in time (it was foolish to try, I know that now). What are the chances I could dig them up and get them to survive the winter indoors? Has anybody tried this?

I did overwinter my plain old red geranium and it did come back in good foliage but never did rebloom; I'll give it another try this winter along with the pelargonium I bought and think is just kinda cute.

Any ideas are appreciated.
by dodge on August 27, 2006 01:07 AM
roflol

I winter over all my geraniums and they bloom.. SOme I put in the basement to rest...Bring them out in January and they grow and bloom their heads off. My sister gives me hers and I have a slew i keep.
Your cutting story sound odd.....I have had them even start in sand.......rooting ..Right now is a good time to try cuttings..

dodge........ps my rose cuttings are rooting

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by roflol on August 27, 2006 11:36 AM
Maybe the problem is in the air or water? I had tried rose cuttings in sand a couple of years ago, had seen it on TV (I have a Mr. Lincoln rose that I would plant every square inch of my yard if I could, it smells so nice). The cuttings died a lot like the wandering jew did, some would do some sprouting but little to no roots and turned black from the stem end up; others just turned black and moldy. Either I overwatered those as well, or I guess it is possible there is a mold or fungus in the water or air or sand\soil that inhibits rooting or just plain kills (I think I used a rooting compound on these, but not sure how fresh it was, it was kind of a roughed up envelope and the nursery sales clerk did not know anything about it).

These were in the kitchen, I guess that is another possible clue to a problem. I guess I will try again now. I cannot get enough Mr. Lincoln roses.
:-)

I have not yet had this problem with house plants that are already established, although I have not planted any grown plants in these pots yet. So far the snail vines and vinca are still green and look alive outside .... so still waiting to see what will happen to them.

I may have waited too long with the geraniums, I think I only brought them out of the garage in April! I had instructions to soak them for an hour once a month, and I only remembered to do it twice from October to April... only two of the four geraniums came back for me. I have read lately not to water at all during the winter. How do you overwinter yours, Barb?

Thanks again!
Terri
by ShirlS on August 27, 2006 11:52 AM
Hi ROFLOL

I am going to Pm you something about Rose propagation.

Shirl

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Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
by dodge on August 27, 2006 12:44 PM
sHIRLs

oK

Be my guest......

dodge [Love] [Love]

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by dodge on August 27, 2006 12:50 PM
rol

Your getting stupid directions ...
That hour a month is not true ......The truth of the matter is , in the winter geraniums should go dry and no watered for a while.. come January and Feb .....water sparingly.. Dont drown them.. SOunds like you drown the cutting too....That black root?????
If you want to start things in plain water.....Just put them in above the node. take the leaves off on the part where your trying to root.....
Keep them on the shady side of the house......
Gee I dont know how to say it.

Good luck keep going ..You will win.

dodge [clappy] [clappy]

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by roflol on August 27, 2006 03:43 PM
The monthly watering thing was for if you take the geraniums out of dirt and put them in a bag to overwinter... the other options given were to leave in pot, or hang up, all in very cool places. This was on *********, and from a couple of sources, but the latest information was that the watering was wrong, but I only read that this spring. So will your geraniums be taking dirt naps, just hanging out, or something else?
:-)

Shirl, as soon as I figure out how to pick up PMs I'll be reading up on your rose props. Thank you!
by ShirlS on August 28, 2006 04:14 AM
Dodge

[kissies] good to see you!

You are welcome Roflol

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Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
by dodge on August 28, 2006 05:03 AM
sOME OF MINE ARE HUNG INSIDE AN NOT WATERED MUCH AT ALL.

OTHERS ARE IN THE BASEMENT LAYING LOW TILL ABOUT JANUARY.. NO WATER MOSTLY.

BARB

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''
by roflol on August 28, 2006 06:35 AM
Barb, forgive me for being daft... when you say some are hung inside and not watered much at all, do you mean they are still in pots in soil and treated as houseplants, just not watered much during the winter? There's a method where they are overwintered by being taken out of the soil, excess soil shaken off, and hung in a cool (not freezing) location until probably Feb when they're potted up again and brought back out of dormancy.

I'm guessing you meant the houseplant way. I have two pelargonium plants so will try one way with one and the other way with the other and see which way works best, if either. These looked like ivy and I just thought that was too clever to pass up, and they put out sweet little two-tone pink flowers to boot so hoped I could get them to come back for next year.

Thanks again. Just stopped in today, the rains have come back with a vengeance and I'm trying to figure out where the water is getting into the basement.... why does it always seem to be feast or famine?!

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